* U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Friday, as investors awaited key earnings reports from conglomerate General Electric and Bank of America. * At 0756 GMT, futures for the S&P 500 were up 0.28 percent, Dow Jones futures were up 0.31 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures were up
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Google plans to launch an online store to deliver electronic books to any device with a Web browser, threatening to upset a burgeoning market for dedicated e-readers dominated by Amazon's Kindle. The Web search giant said on Thursday it would launch Google Editions in the first half of next year, initially offering about half a
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The Russian government has set aside the resources to support its economy and manage the strains associated with contingent liabilities, Moody's Investors Service said in a pair of new reports. "As the global crisis has unfolded, large-scale funding of the banking system and sizeable debts of quasi-state corporations have made this a concern," said Moody's
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The European Investment Bank's (EIB) Aaa/P-1/stable ratings reflect its intrinsic financial strength, as evidenced by its sound governance, its strong capital adequacy, the high quality of its assets and investments, its ample liquidity and its prudent risk management policies, Moody's Investors Service said in its new sovereign credit analysis on EIB. Its ratings are further
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Moody's Investors Service has withdrawn ratings of Bank Standard of Azerbaijan, while the long-term local and foreign currency deposit ratings carry a negative outlook. Moody's noted that, as of the date of the ratings withdrawal, Standard had no outstanding debts rated by Moody's. The previous rating action on Standard was on 28 July 2009 when
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U.S. consumer prices rose marginally in September and the number of workers filing new claims for jobless insurance hit a nine-month low last week, more proof the economy was healing after a protracted recession. Separately, a gauge of manufacturing in New York State jumped unexpectedly this month to its highest in five years on surging
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Goldman Sachs dampened buoyant investor sentiment on Thursday with earnings that failed to meet the most extreme expectations, reversing gains on world stock markets and pushing the dollar higher. Wall Street looked set for a negative start. The investment bank actually posted relatively robust, better-than-expected quarterly earnings but disappointed some by not reaching the wilder
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The seven-bedroom, three-bath house in this city's West Garfield Park neighborhood had once been someone's American Dream. But at a recent auction of about 100 foreclosed houses and condos, it was just Property No. 20 — and drawing no bids from a roomful of buyers despite its bargain-basement price. "Any interest in this home at
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The average UK house price rose 0.7 percent in September from the month before, boosted by rising values at the top end of the market and giving further evidence the market is recovering, a poll showed on Thursday. The poll of polls by property consultancy Chesterton Humberts and the Centre for Economics and Business Research
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The value of building permits authorised in Cyprus rose for the second straight month in July, rising by 5.8% year on year to EUR 258.9 million. In June, permits had risen in value by 62.6% to EUR 383.4 mln. The absolute number of permits also rose by 3.2% to 804, having grown by 11.7% in
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